BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Brevard Public Schools announced Tuesday the temporary closure of Golfview Elementary School due to a rising number of coronavirus cases.
School officials did not disclose how many cases have been reported, only saying it was a “low number,” but it could impact many classrooms.
“We don’t comment on the health of our students or our staff we are not able to give any kind of information that may end up leading to somebody being identified it violates their HIPA,” BPS spokesperson Katherine Allen.
James Neave and his grandson, who is in second grade, dropped by Golfview Elementary Magnet School on Wednesday to pick up some of his books. He said his grandson was already in quarantine after someone in his class got sick.
“His class -- that’s where one of the individuals tested positive,” Neave said.
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The district said the school will return to normal operations Tuesday, the day after Labor Day.
“The closure will take place immediately,” according to a news release. “All students currently participating in brick-and-mortar instruction, will be moved to eLearning from home or paper/pencil packets. Families are being notified of the closure (Tuesday) evening and should NOT have their child attend school for the remainder of the week.”
District officials said the closure will impact all school programming and bus service.
Meals will still be provided, however. Lunches can be picked up in the car loop from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday through Friday.
The district said the Florida Department of Health has notified all of the families of children who were in close contact with individuals who were confirmed to be positive with COVID-19, and they have requested they quarantine for 14 days.
They said families who have not been alerted do not need to quarantine, but they should continue to monitor their health and take a daily temperature for any sign of illness.
Essential staff, including office, custodial, cafeteria, and aftercare employees will still report to work on Wednesday, with instructional staff returning on Thursday to conduct eLearning.
“Any time that a closure is being discussed it’s because there are single cases in multiple classrooms. If we see something that there’s a potential spread happening or we assume that there may be, we are going to go ahead and be proactive, so even though it’s a difficult decision to close a school, it’s a feat there’s many things that need to be taken into consideration,” Allen said.
School officials said crews be conducting a deep clean of Golfview Elementary.
This is a breaking story. Check back for updates.
